Editing Greek fire

{{Short description|Incendiary weapon used by the Byzantines}}
{{About|the weapon|the band|Greek Fire (band)|other uses|Greek fires (disambiguation){{!}}Greek fires}}
[[File:Greekfire-madridskylitzes1.jpg|thumb|upright=1.35|"The Roman fleet burn the opposite fleet down"{{Notetag|{{langx|grc-x-medieval|Στόλος Ρωμαίων πυρπολῶν τὸν τῶν ἐναντίων στόλον|Stolos Rhōmaiōn pyrpolōn ton tōn enantiōn stolon}}}} – An [[Eastern Roman]] / [[Byzantine]] war ship using their "secret weapon" Greek fire against a ship belonging to the rebel [[Thomas the Slav]], AD 821. (12th century illustration from the "''[[Madrid Skylitzes]]''").]]
'''Greek fire''' was an [[incendiary device|incendiary weapon]] system used by the [[Byzantine Empire]] from the seventh to the fourteenth centuries. The recipe for Greek fire was a closely-guarded [[Classified information|state secret]]; historians have variously speculated that it was based on [[Potassium nitrate|saltpeter]], [[sulfur]], or [[Calcium oxide|quicklime]], but most modern scholars agree that it was based on [[petroleum]] mixed with [[resin]]s, comparable in composition to modern [[napalm]]. Byzantine sailors would toss [[grenade]]s loaded with Greek fire onto enemy ships or spray it from tubes. Its ability to burn on water made it an effective and destructive naval incendiary weapon, and rival powers tried unsuccessfully to copy the material.

==Name==
Usage of the term "Greek fire" has been general in English and most other languages since the Crusades. Original Byzantine sources called the substance a variety of names, such as "sea fire" ([[Medieval Greek]]: {{lang|grc|πῦρ θαλάσσιον}} {{Transliteration|grc|pŷr thalássion}}), "Roman fire" ({{lang|grc|πῦρ ῥωμαϊκόν}} {{Transliteration|grc|pŷr rhōmaïkón}}), "war fire" ({{lang|grc|πολεμικὸν πῦρ}} {{Transliteration|grc|polemikòn pŷr}}), "liquid fire" ({{lang|grc|ὑγρὸν πῦρ}} {{Transliteration|grc|hygròn pŷr}}), "sticky fire" ({{lang|grc|πῦρ κολλητικόν}} {{Transliteration|grc|pŷr kollētikón}}), or "manufactured fire" ({{lang|grc|πῦρ σκευαστόν}} {{Transliteration|grc|pŷr skeuastón}}).{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=608–609}}{{sfn|Forbes|1959|p=83}}

==History==
{{Further|Early thermal weapons|Byzantine navy}}
Incendiary and flaming weapons were used in warfare for centuries before Greek fire was invented. They included sulfur-, [[petroleum]]-, and [[bitumen]]-based mixtures.{{sfn|Leicester|1971|p=75}}{{sfn|Crosby|2002|pp=88–89}} Incendiary arrows and pots or small pouches containing combustible substances surrounded by [[caltrops]] or spikes, or launched by [[catapult]]s, were used in the Greco-Roman world. [[Thucydides]] mentions that in the [[Battle of Delium|siege of Delium]] in 424&nbsp;BC a long tube on wheels was used which blew flames forward using a large [[bellows]].{{sfn|Partington|1999|pp=1–5}}{{sfn|Forbes|1959|pp=70–74}}<ref>Thuc. 4.100.1</ref> The Graeco-Roman treatise {{lang|grc-Latn|Kestoi}}, compiled in the late 2nd or early 3rd century AD and traditionally ascribed to [[Sextus Julius Africanus|Julius Africanus]], records a mixture that ignited from adequate heat and intense sunlight, used in grenades or night attacks:

{{blockquote|Automatic fire also by the following formula. This is the recipe: take equal amounts of sulphur, rock salt, ashes, thunder stone, and pyrite and pound fine in a black mortar at midday sun. Also in equal amounts of each ingredient mix together black mulberry [[resin]] and Zakynthian asphalt, the latter in a liquid form and free-flowing, resulting in a product that is sooty colored. Then add to the asphalt the tiniest amount of quicklime. But because the sun is at its zenith, one must pound it carefully and protect the face, for it will ignite suddenly. When it catches fire, one should seal it in some sort of copper receptacle; in this way you will have it available in a box, without exposing it to the sun. If you should wish to ignite enemy armaments, you will smear it on in the evening, either on the armaments or some other object, but in secret; when the sun comes up, everything will be burnt up.<ref>Julius Africanus, ''The Cestus'', D25, 116–117.</ref>}}

In naval warfare, the Byzantine emperor [[Anastasius I (emperor)|Anastasius I]] ({{reign|491|518}}) is recorded by chronicler [[John Malalas]] to have been advised by a philosopher from [[Athens]] called Proclus to use sulfur to burn the ships of the rebel general [[Vitalian (general)|Vitalian]].{{sfn|Partington|1999|p=5}}

Greek fire proper was developed in {{circa|672}} and is ascribed by the chronicler [[Theophanes the Confessor]] to [[Callinicus of Heliopolis|Kallinikos]] (Latinized Callinicus), a Jewish architect from [[Heliopolis (Syria)|Heliopolis]], in Syria, by then overrun by the [[Early Muslim conquests|Muslim conquests]]:{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=607–609}}<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |title=Callinicus of Heliopolis {{!}} Byzantine Empire, Hagia Sophia, Dome |encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Callinicus-of-Heliopolis |access-date=2024-07-23 |language=en}}</ref>

{{Blockquote|At that time Kallinikos, an artificer from Heliopolis, fled to the Romans. He had devised a sea fire which ignited the Arab ships and burned them with all hands. Thus it was that the Romans returned with victory and discovered the sea fire.{{sfn|Theophanes|Turtledove|1982|p=53}}}}

The accuracy and exact chronology of this account is open to question: elsewhere, Theophanes reports the use of fire-carrying ships equipped with nozzles ({{lang|grc-Latn|siphōn}})<ref name="Chronographia 1839 p. 610">{{cite book | title=Chronographia | publisher=Impensis E. Weberi | series=Corpus scriptorum historiae Byzantinae | year=1839 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PyIAAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA610 | language=it | access-date=2022-02-18 | page=610}}</ref> by the Byzantines a couple of years before the supposed arrival of Kallinikos at Constantinople.{{sfn|Theophanes|Turtledove|1982|p=52}} If this is not due to chronological confusion of the events of the siege, it may suggest that Kallinikos introduced an improved version of an established weapon.{{sfn|Roland|1992|p=657}}{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|p=608}} The historian [[J. R. Partington|James Partington]] thinks it likely that Greek fire was not the creation of any single person but "invented by chemists in Constantinople who had inherited the discoveries of the [[Alexandria]]n chemical school".{{sfn|Partington |1999|pp=12–13}} The 11th-century chronicler [[George Kedrenos]] records that Kallinikos came from [[Heliopolis (Ancient Egypt)|Heliopolis in Egypt]], but most scholars reject this as an error.{{sfn|Forbes|1959|p=80}} Kedrenos also records the story, considered implausible by modern scholars, that Kallinikos' descendants, a family called {{lang|grc-Latn|Lampros}}, "brilliant", kept the secret of the fire's manufacture and continued doing so to Kedrenos' time.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|p=608}}

Kallinikos' development of Greek fire came at a critical moment in the Byzantine Empire's history: weakened by its long [[Roman–Persian Wars|wars with Sassanid Persia]], the Byzantines had been unable to effectively resist the onslaught of the [[Early Muslim conquests|Muslim conquests]]. Within a generation, Syria, Palestine, and Egypt had fallen to the Arabs, who in {{c.|lk=no|672}} set out to conquer the imperial capital of [[Constantinople]]. Greek fire was used to great effect against the Muslim fleets, helping to repel the Muslims at the [[Siege of Constantinople (674–678)|first]] and [[Siege of Constantinople (718)|second]] Arab sieges of the city.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=26–27, 31–32}} Records of its use in later naval battles against the [[Saracen]]s are more sporadic, but it secured victories during the Byzantine expansion in the late 9th and early 10th centuries.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=61–62, 72}} Use of the substance was prominent in Byzantine civil wars, chiefly the revolt of the thematic fleets in 727 and the large-scale rebellion led by [[Thomas the Slav]] in 821–823. In both cases, the rebel fleets were defeated by the Constantinople-based central Imperial fleet through the use of Greek fire.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=32, 46, 73}} The Byzantines also used the weapon to devastating effect against the various [[Rus' people|Rus']] raids on the [[Bosphorus|Bosporus]], especially those of [[Rus'–Byzantine War (941)|941]] and [[Rus'–Byzantine War (1043)|1043]], as well as during the [[Rus'–Byzantine War (970–971)|Bulgarian war of 970–971]], when the fire-carrying Byzantine ships blockaded the Danube.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=86, 189}}

The importance placed on Greek fire during the Empire's struggle against the Arabs led to its discovery being ascribed to divine intervention. The Emperor [[Constantine VII|Constantine Porphyrogennetos]] ({{reign|945|959}}), in his book {{lang|la|[[De Administrando Imperio]]}}, admonishes his son and heir, [[Romanos II]] ({{reign|959|963}}), never to reveal the secrets of its composition, as it was "shown and revealed by an angel to the great and holy first Christian emperor [[Constantine I|Constantine]]" and that the angel bound him "not to prepare this fire but for Christians, and only in the imperial city". As a warning, he adds that one official, who was bribed into handing some of it over to the Empire's enemies, was struck down by a "flame from heaven" as he was about to enter a church.{{sfn|Moravcsik|Jenkins|1967|pp=68–71}}{{sfn|Forbes|1959|p=82}} As the latter incident demonstrates, the Byzantines could not avoid capture of their secret weapon: the Arabs captured at least one fireship intact in 827, and the Bulgars captured several {{lang|grc-Latn|siphōn}}s and much of the substance itself in 812/814. This was apparently not enough to allow their enemies to copy it (see [[#General characteristics|below]]). The Arabs used various incendiary substances similar to the Byzantine weapon, but were never able to copy the Byzantine method of deployment by {{lang|grc-Latn|siphōn}}, and used catapults and grenades instead.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=609–611}}{{sfn|Roland|1992|pages=660, 663–664}}

Greek fire continued to be mentioned during the 12th century, and [[Anna Komnene]] gives a vivid description of its use in a naval battle against the [[Pisa]]ns in 1099.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|p=110}} The use of hastily improvised [[fireship]]s is mentioned during the [[Siege of Constantinople (1203)|1203 siege]] of Constantinople by the [[Fourth Crusade]], but no report confirms the use of Greek fire. This might be because of the general disarmament of the Empire in the 20 years leading up to the sacking, or because the Byzantines had lost access to the areas where the primary ingredients were to be found, or even perhaps because the secret had been lost over time.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=630–631}}{{sfn|Haldon|2006|p=316}}

Records of a 13th-century use of "Greek fire" by the Saracens against the Crusaders can be read through the Memoirs of the Lord of Joinville during the [[Seventh Crusade]]. One description of the memoir says "the tail of fire that trailed behind it was as big as a great spear; and it made such a noise as it came, that it sounded like the thunder of heaven. It looked like a dragon flying through the air. Such a bright light did it cast, that one could see all over the camp as though it were day, by reason of the great mass of fire, and the brilliance of the light that it shed."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lordsandladies.org/greek-fire.htm|title=Greek Fire|website=Lords and Ladies |first=Linda|last=Alchin}}</ref>

In the 19th century, it is reported that an [[Armenians|Armenian]] called Kavafian approached the government of the [[Ottoman Empire]] with a new type of Greek fire he claimed to have developed. Kavafian refused to reveal its composition when asked by the government, insisting that he be placed in command of its use during naval engagements. Not long after this, he was poisoned by imperial authorities, without their ever having found out his secret.<ref>{{in lang|hy}} [[Hrachia Adjarian|Adjarian, Hrachia]]. {{lang|hy|italic=no|"Հայոց դերը Օսմանյան կայսրության մեջ"}} [The role of Armenians in the Ottoman Empire]. ''Banber Erevani Hamalsarani'' 1967; trans. in Charles Issawi, ''The Economic History of Turkey, 1800–1914'', Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1980, p. 64.</ref>

==Manufacture==

===General characteristics===
{{Byzantine Military}}
As Constantine Porphyrogennetos' warnings show, the ingredients and the processes of manufacture and deployment of Greek fire were carefully guarded military secrets. So strict was the secrecy that the composition of Greek fire was lost forever and remains a source of speculation.{{sfn|Haldon|2006|p=290}} The mystery of the formula has long dominated the research into Greek fire. Despite this almost exclusive focus, Greek fire is best understood as a complete weapon system of many components, all of which were needed to operate together to render it effective. This comprised not only the formula of its composition, but also the specialized [[dromon]] ships that carried it into battle, the device used to prepare the substance by heating and pressurizing it, the 
{{lang|grc-Latn|siphōn}} projecting it, and the special training of the {{lang|grc-Latn|siphōnarioi}} who used it.{{sfn|Roland|1992|pp=660, 663}} Knowledge of the whole system was highly [[Compartmentalization (information security)|compartmentalised]], with operators and technicians aware of the secrets of only one component, ensuring that no enemy could gain knowledge of it in its entirety.{{sfn|Roland|1992|pp=663–664}} This accounts for the fact that when the [[First Bulgarian Empire|Bulgarians]] took [[Nesebar|Mesembria]] and [[Debeltos]] in 814, they captured 36 {{lang|grc-Latn|siphōn}}s and even quantities of the substance itself,{{sfn|Theophanes|Turtledove|1982|p=178}} but were unable to make any use of them.{{sfn|Roland|1992|p=663}}{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|p=609}}

The information available on Greek fire is indirect, based on references in the [[Byzantine military manuals]] and secondary historical sources such as [[Anna Komnene]] and Western European chroniclers, which are often inaccurate. In her ''[[Alexiad]]'', Anna Komnene provides a description of an incendiary weapon, which was used by the Byzantine garrison of [[Dyrrhachium]] in 1108 against the [[Normans]]. It is often regarded as an at least partial "recipe" for Greek fire:{{sfn|Partington|1999|pp=19, 29}}{{sfn|Ellis Davidson|1973|p=64}}<ref>[[Sir James Sibbald David Scott, 3rd Baronet|Scott, James Sibbald David]] (1868). [https://archive.org/details/britisharmyitsor02scotuoft ''The British army: its origin, progress, and equipment'']. p. 190.</ref>

{{blockquote|This fire is made by the following arts: From the pine and certain such evergreen trees, inflammable resin is collected. This is rubbed with sulfur and put into tubes of reed, and is blown by men using it with violent and continuous breath. Then in this manner it meets the fire on the tip and catches light and falls like a fiery whirlwind on the faces of the enemies.}}

At the same time, the reports by Western chroniclers of the famed {{lang|la|ignis graecus}} are largely unreliable, since they apply the name to all incendiary substances.{{sfn|Haldon|2006|p=290}}

In attempting to reconstruct the Greek fire system, the evidence from the contemporary literary references provides the following characteristics:
* It burned on water; according to some interpretations it was ignited by water. Numerous writers testify that it could be extinguished only by a few substances, such as sand, strong vinegar, or old urine, some presumably by a sort of chemical reaction.{{sfn|Roland|1992|pp=657–658}}{{sfn|Cheronis|1937|pp=362–363}}{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|p=617}}
* It was a liquid substance – not some sort of projectile – as verified both by descriptions and the name "liquid fire".{{sfn|Roland|1992|pp=657–658}}{{sfn|Cheronis|1937|pp=362–363}}
* At sea it was usually ejected from a {{lang|grc-Latn|siphōn}},{{sfn|Roland|1992|pp=657–658}}{{sfn|Cheronis|1937|pp=362–363}} but earthenware pots or grenades filled with it – or similar substances – were also used.{{sfn|Partington|1999|p=14}}
* The discharge of Greek fire was accompanied by "thunder" and "much smoke".{{sfn|Roland|1992|pp=657–658}}{{sfn|Cheronis|1937|pp=362–363}}<ref>Leo VI, ''[[Tactica of Emperor Leo VI the Wise|Tactica]]'', XIX.59, transl. in {{harvnb|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|p=507}}</ref>

===Theories on composition===
The first and, for a long time, most popular theory regarding the composition of Greek fire held that its chief ingredient was [[Potassium nitrate|saltpeter]], making it an early form of [[gunpowder]].{{sfn|Haldon|Byrne|1977|p=92}}{{sfn|Ellis Davidson|1973|pp=69–70}} This argument was based on the "thunder and smoke" description, as well as on the distance the flame could be projected from the {{lang|grc-Latn|siphōn}}, which suggested an explosive discharge.{{sfn|Roland|1992|p=659}} From the times of [[Isaac Vossius]],{{sfn|Forbes|1959|p=83}} several scholars adhered to this position, most notably the so-called "French school" during the 19th century, which included chemist [[Marcellin Berthelot]].{{sfn|Roland|1992|pp=658–659}}{{sfn|Ellis Davidson|1973|p=69}}

This view has subsequently been rejected, since saltpeter does not appear to have been used in warfare in Europe or the Middle East before the 13th century, and is absent from the accounts of the Muslim writers – the [[Alchemy and chemistry in medieval Islam|foremost chemists]] of the early [[Middle Ages|medieval]] world{{sfn|al-Hassan|2001|pp=41–83}} – before the same period.{{sfn|Partington|1999|pp=21–22}} In addition, the behavior of the suggested mixture would have been very different from the {{lang|grc-Latn|siphōn}}-projected substance described by Byzantine sources.{{sfn|Forbes|1959|pp=83–84}}

A second view, based on the fact that Greek fire was inextinguishable by water (some sources suggest that water intensified the flames), suggested that its destructive power was the result of the explosive reaction between water and [[quicklime]]. Although quicklime was known and used by the Byzantines and the Arabs in warfare,{{sfn|Partington|1999|pp=6–10, 14}} the theory is refuted by literary and empirical evidence. A quicklime-based substance would have to come in contact with water to ignite, while Emperor Leo's {{lang|la|[[Tactica of Emperor Leo VI the Wise|Tactica]]}} indicates that Greek fire was often poured directly onto the decks of enemy ships,<ref>Leo VI, {{lang|la|[[Tactica of Emperor Leo VI the Wise|Tactica]]}}, XIX.67, transl. in {{harvnb|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|p=509}}</ref> although admittedly, decks were kept wet due to lack of sealants. Likewise, Leo describes the use of grenades,<ref>Leo VI, {{lang|la|[[Tactica of Emperor Leo VI the Wise|Tactica]]}}, XIX.63, transl. in {{harvnb|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|p=509}}</ref> which further reinforces the view that contact with water was not necessary for the substance's ignition.{{sfn|Roland|1992|p=660}} Zenghelis (1932) pointed out that, based on experiments, the result of the water–quicklime reaction would be negligible in the open sea.{{sfn|Zenghelis|1932|p=270}}

Another similar proposition suggested that Kallinikos had discovered [[calcium phosphide]], which can be made by boiling bones in urine in a sealed vessel.<ref>[[Colin McEvedy]] (1992), ''The New Penguin Atlas of Medieval History'', New York:  Penguin.</ref> On contact with water it releases [[phosphine]], which ignites spontaneously. Extensive experiments with calcium phosphide also failed to reproduce the described intensity of Greek fire.{{sfn|Cheronis|1937|p=363}}{{sfn|Ellis Davidson|1973|p=70}}

Consequently, although the presence of either quicklime or saltpeter in the mixture cannot be entirely excluded, they were not the primary ingredient.{{sfn|Ellis Davidson|1973|p=70}}{{sfn|Roland|1992|p=659}} Most modern scholars agree that Greek fire was based on either crude or refined [[petroleum]], comparable to modern [[napalm]]. The Byzantines had easy access to crude oil from the naturally occurring wells around the [[Black Sea]] (e.g., the wells around [[Tmutorakan]] noted by Constantine Porphyrogennetos) or in various locations throughout the Middle East.{{sfn|Haldon|Byrne|1977|p=92}}{{sfn|Partington|1999|p=4}}{{sfn|Forbes|1959|pp=82–84}} An alternate name for Greek fire was "[[Medes|Median]] fire" ({{lang|grc|μηδικὸν πῦρ}}),{{sfn|Forbes|1959|p=83}} and the 6th-century historian [[Procopius]] records that crude oil, called "[[naphtha]]" (in Greek: {{lang|grc|νάφθα}} {{lang|grc-Latn|náphtha}}, from [[Old Persian]] {{lang|peo|[[wikt:𐎴𐎳𐎫|𐎴𐎳𐎫]]}} {{lang|peo-Latn|naft}}) by the Persians, was known to the Greeks as "Median oil" ({{lang|grc|μηδικὸν ἔλαιον}}).<ref>Procopius, ''De bello Gothico'', IV.11.36, cited in {{harvnb|Partington|1999|p=3}}</ref> This seems to corroborate the availability of naphtha as a basic ingredient of Greek fire.{{sfn|Ellis Davidson|1973|p=62}}

Naphtha was also used by the [[Abbasids]] in the 9th century, with special troops, the {{lang|ar-Latn|naffāṭūn}}, who wore thick protective suits and used small copper vessels containing burning oil, which they threw onto the enemy troops.{{sfn|Partington|1999|p=22}} There is also a surviving 9th-century [[Latin]] text, preserved at [[Wolfenbüttel]] in Germany, which mentions the ingredients of what appears to be Greek fire and the operation of the {{lang|grc-Latn|siphōn}}s used to project it. Although the text contains some inaccuracies, it identifies the main component as naphtha.{{sfn|Forbes|1959|p=83}}{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=614–616}} [[Resin]]s were probably added as a thickener (the {{lang|la|[[Praecepta Militaria]]}} refer to the substance as {{lang|grc|πῦρ κολλητικόν}}, "sticky fire"), and to increase the duration and intensity of the flame.{{sfn|Haldon|2006|p=310}}{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|p=618}} A modern theoretical concoction included the use of [[pine tar]] and animal fat.<ref name="video">{{cite magazine | url = http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/the-link/videos/greek-fire/ | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20121021091344/http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/channel/the-link/videos/greek-fire/ | url-status = dead | archive-date = October 21, 2012 | title = The Link: Greek Fire | magazine = National Geographic | access-date = 22 April 2013}}</ref>

A 12th-century treatise prepared by [[Mardi bin Ali al-Tarsusi]] for [[Saladin]] records an Arab version of Greek fire, called {{lang|ar-Latn|naft}}, which also had a petroleum base, with [[sulfur]] and various resins added. Any direct relation with the Byzantine formula is unlikely.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=610–611}} An [[Isabella Cortese|Italian]] recipe from the 16th century has been recorded for recreational use; it includes charcoal from a willow tree, saltpeter ({{lang|it|sale ardente}}), alcohol, sulfur, incense, tar ({{lang|it|pegola}}), wool, and [[camphor]]; the concoction was guaranteed to "burn under water" and to be "beautiful".<ref>{{cite book |last=Cortese |first=Isabella |title=I Segreti della signora |year=1565 |publisher=Giovanni Bariletto |location=Venice |page=62 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=n2Ga_v5kpI4C&q=fuoco+greco+secreti&pg=PA62 |access-date=23 February 2016}}</ref>

==Methods of deployment==
[[File:Hand-siphon for Greek fire, medieval illumination.jpg|thumb|Use of a ''cheirosiphōn'' ("hand-''siphōn''"), a portable flamethrower, used from a flying bridge against a castle. Illumination from the ''[[Poliorcetica]]'' of [[Hero of Byzantium]].]]
The chief method of deployment of Greek fire, which sets it apart from similar substances, was its projection through a tube (''siphōn''), for use aboard ships or in sieges. Portable projectors (''cheirosiphōnes'', χειροσίφωνες) were also invented, reputedly by Emperor Leo VI. The [[Byzantine military manuals]] also mention that jars (''chytrai'' or ''tzykalia'') filled with Greek fire and [[caltrop]]s wrapped with [[tow (fibre)|tow]] and soaked in the substance were thrown by catapults, while pivoting [[Crane (machine)|crane]]s (''gerania'') were employed to pour it upon enemy ships.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=378–379, 609}}{{sfn|Forbes|1959|pp=86–87}} The ''cheirosiphōnes'' especially were prescribed for use at land and in sieges, both against [[siege machines]] and against defenders on the walls, by several 10th-century military authors, and their use is depicted in the ''[[Poliorcetica]]'' of [[Hero of Byzantium]].{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=617–619}}{{sfn|Haldon|2006|p=295}} The Byzantine [[dromon]]s usually had a ''siphōn'' installed on their [[Bow (watercraft)#Prow|prow]] under the [[forecastle]], but additional devices could also be placed elsewhere on the ship. Thus in 941, when the Byzantines were facing the vastly more numerous Rus' fleet, ''siphōn''s were placed also amidships and even astern.
{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=203, 618}}

===Projectors===
The use of tubular projectors (σίφων, ''siphōn'') is amply attested in the contemporary sources. Anna Komnene gives this account of beast-shaped Greek fire projectors being mounted to the bow of warships:{{sfn|Dawes|1928|p=292}}
<blockquote>As he [the Emperor [[Alexios I Komnenos|Alexios I]]] knew that the [[Pisa]]ns were skilled in sea warfare and dreaded a battle with them, on the prow of each ship he had a head fixed of a lion or other land-animal, made in brass or iron with the mouth open and then gilded over, so that their mere aspect was terrifying. And the fire which was to be directed against the enemy through tubes he made to pass through the mouths of the beasts, so that it seemed as if the lions and the other similar monsters were vomiting the fire.</blockquote>

Some sources provide more information on the composition and function of the whole mechanism. The Wolfenbüttel manuscript provides the following description:{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=614–616}}
<blockquote>...having built a furnace right at the front of the ship, they set on it a copper vessel full of these things, having put fire underneath. And one of them, having made a bronze tube similar to that which the rustics call a ''squitiatoria'', "squirt," with which boys play, they spray [it] at the enemy.</blockquote>

Another, possibly first-hand, account of the use of Greek fire comes from the 11th-century ''[[Yngvars saga víðförla]]'', in which the [[Viking]] [[Ingvar the Far-Travelled]] faces ships equipped with Greek fire weapons:{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=616–617}}
<blockquote>[They] began blowing with smiths’ bellows at a furnace in which there was fire and there came from it a great din. There stood there also a brass [or bronze] tube and from it flew much fire against one ship, and it burned up in a short time so that all of it became white ashes...</blockquote>
The account, albeit embellished, corresponds with many of the characteristics of Greek fire known from other sources, such as a loud roar that accompanied its discharge.{{sfn|Ellis Davidson|1973|p=72}} These two texts are also the only two sources that explicitly mention that the substance was heated over a furnace before being discharged; although the validity of this information is open to question, modern reconstructions have relied upon them.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=628–629}}{{sfn|Haldon|2006|p=315}}

[[File:Greek Fire mechanism after Haldon and Byrne.jpg|thumb|left|Proposed reconstruction of the Greek fire mechanism by Haldon and Byrne]]
Based on these descriptions and the Byzantine sources, John Haldon and Maurice Byrne designed a hypothetical apparatus as consisting of three main components: a bronze pump, which was used to pressurize the oil; a brazier, used to heat the oil (πρόπυρον, ''propyron'', "pre-heater"); and the nozzle, which was covered in bronze and mounted on a swivel (στρεπτόν, ''strepton'').{{sfn|Haldon|Byrne|1977|p=93}} The brazier, burning a match of linen or flax that produced intense heat and the characteristic thick smoke, was used to heat oil and the other ingredients in an airtight tank above it,{{sfn|Haldon|Byrne|1977|p=94}} a process that also helped to dissolve the resins into a fluid mixture.{{sfn|Haldon|2006|p=310}} The substance was pressurized by the heat and the use of a force pump. After it had reached the proper pressure, a valve connecting the tank with the swivel was opened and the mixture was discharged from its end, being ignited at its mouth by a flame.{{sfn|Haldon|Byrne|1977|p=95}} The intense heat of the flame made necessary the presence of heat shields made of iron (βουκόλια, ''boukolia''), which are attested in the fleet inventories.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=624–626}}

The process of operating Haldon and Byrne's design was fraught with danger, as the mounting pressure could easily make the heated oil tank explode, a flaw which was not recorded as a problem with the historical fire weapon.{{sfn|Haldon|Byrne|1977|p=96}}{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=627–628}} In the experiments conducted by Haldon in 2002 for the episode "Fireship" of the television series ''Machines Times Forgot'', even modern welding techniques failed to secure adequate insulation of the bronze tank under pressure. This led to the relocation of the pressure pump between the tank and the nozzle. The full-scale device built on this basis established the effectiveness of the mechanism's design, even with the simple materials and techniques available to the Byzantines. The experiment used crude oil mixed with wood resins, and achieved a flame temperature of over {{convert|1000|C}} and an effective range of up to {{convert|15|m|sp=us}}.<ref>For a detailed description, cf. {{harvnb|Haldon|2006|pp=297–315}} An interesting characteristic displayed during these tests was that, contrary to expectations due to the flame's heat, the stream of fire projected through the tube did not curve upwards but downwards, as the fuel was not completely vaporized as it left the nozzle. This fact is important because medieval galleys had a low profile, and a high-arcing flame would miss them entirely.{{harvnb|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|p=621}}</ref>

===Hand-held projectors===
[[File:Hand-siphon for Greek fire, medieval illumination (detail).jpg|thumb|Detail of a ''cheirosiphōn'']]
The portable ''cheirosiphōn'' ("hand-''siphōn''"), the earliest analogue to a modern [[flamethrower]], is extensively attested in the military documents of the 10th century, and recommended for use in both sea and land. They first appear in the ''[[Tactica of Emperor Leo VI the Wise|Tactica]]'' of emperor [[Leo VI the Wise]], who claims to have invented them.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|p=617}} Subsequent authors continued to refer to the ''cheirosiphōnes'', especially for use against [[siege towers]]; [[Nikephoros II Phokas]] also advises their use in field armies, with the aim of disrupting the enemy formation.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|pp=617–619}} Although both Leo VI and Nikephoros Phokas claim that the substance used in the ''cheirosiphōnes'' was the same as in the static devices used on ships, Haldon and Byrne consider that the former were manifestly different from their larger cousins, and theorize that the device was fundamentally different, "a simple syringe [that] squirted both liquid fire (presumably unignited) and noxious juices to repel enemy troops." The illustrations of Hero's ''Poliorcetica'' show the ''cheirosiphōn'' also throwing the ignited substance.{{sfn|Haldon|Byrne|1977|p=97}}{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|p=627}}

===Grenades===
[[File:Liquid fire granades Chania.jpg|thumb|Ceramic grenades that were filled with Greek fire, surrounded by [[caltrop]]s, 10th–12th century, [[National Historical Museum (Greece)|National Historical Museum]], Athens, Greece]]
In its earliest form, Greek fire was hurled onto enemy forces by firing a burning cloth-wrapped ball, perhaps containing a flask, using a form of [[Catapult|light catapult]], most probably a seaborne variant of the Roman light catapult or [[onager (siege weapon)|onager]]. These were capable of hurling loads of around {{convert|6|to|9|kg|lb|0|abbr=on}} a distance of {{convert|350|-|450|m|yd|abbr=on}}.

==Effectiveness and countermeasures==
Although the destructiveness of Greek fire is indisputable, it did not make the [[Byzantine navy]] invincible. It was not, in the words of naval historian John Pryor, a "ship-killer" comparable to the [[naval ram]], which, by then, had fallen out of use.{{sfn|Pryor|2003|p=97}} While Greek fire remained a potent weapon, its limitations were significant when compared to more traditional forms of artillery: in its ''siphōn''-deployed version, it had a limited range, and it could be used safely only in a calm sea and with favorable wind conditions.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|p=384}}

The Muslim navies eventually adapted themselves to it by staying out of its effective range and devising methods of protection such as felt or hides soaked in vinegar.{{sfn|Pryor|Jeffreys|2006|p=617}}

Nevertheless, it was still a decisive weapon in many battles. [[John Julius Norwich]] wrote: "It is impossible to exaggerate the importance of Greek fire in Byzantine history."<ref>Norwich, John Julius (1991) ''Byzantium: The Apogee'', London: BCA, p. 151</ref>

==In literature==
*In [[William Golding]]'s 1958 play ''The Brass Butterfly'', adapted from his novella ''[[Envoy Extraordinary (novella)|Envoy Extraordinary]]'', the Greek inventor Phanocles demonstrates explosives to the Roman Emperor. The Emperor decides that his empire is not ready for this or for Phanocles's other inventions and sends him on "a slow boat to China".{{citation needed|date=November 2024}}
*In [[Victor Canning]]'s stage play ''Honour Bright''&thinsp;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://canning.marlodge.net/honour-bright.html|title=Honour Bright|website=The Victor Canning Pages}}</ref> (1960), the crusader Godfrey of Ware returns with a casket of Greek Fire given to him by an old man in Athens.
*In [[Rick Riordan]]'s Greek storyline, Greek Fire is described as being a volatile green liquid. When it explodes, all of the substance is spread out over an area and burns continuously. It is very strong and dangerous.<ref>{{cite book |title=Demigods and Monsters Your Favorite Authors on Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson and the Olympians Series |date=2013 |publisher=BenBella Books |page=205}}</ref>
*In [[C. J. Sansom]]'s historical mystery novel ''[[Dark Fire (Sansom novel)|Dark Fire]]'', [[Thomas Cromwell]] sends the lawyer [[Matthew Shardlake]] to recover the secret of Greek fire, following its discovery in the library of a dissolved London monastery.<ref>[https://www.theguardian.com/books/2004/nov/06/featuresreviews.guardianreview22 “A wherry across the Thames”] ''The Guardian'', 6 November 2004.</ref>
*In [[Michael Crichton]]'s sci-fi novel ''[[Timeline (novel)|Timeline]]'', [[Timeline (novel)#Professor Edward Johnston|Professor Edward Johnston]] is stuck in the past in 14th-century Europe, and claims to have knowledge of Greek fire.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Science of Michael Crichton An Unauthorized Exploration Into the Real Science Behind the Fictional Worlds of Michael Crichton |date=2008 |publisher=BenBella Books |page=87}}</ref>
*In [[Mika Waltari]]'s novel ''[[The Dark Angel (Waltari novel)|The Dark Angel]]'', some old men who are the last ones who know the secret of Greek fire are mentioned as present in the last Christian services held in [[Hagia Sophia]] before the [[Fall of Constantinople]].  The narrator is told that in the event of the city's fall, they will be killed so as to keep the secret from the Turks.{{citation needed|date=November 2024}}
*In [[George R. R. Martin]]'s fantasy series of novels ''[[A Song of Ice and Fire]]'', and its television adaptation ''[[Game of Thrones]]'', wildfire is similar to Greek fire. It was used in naval battles as it could remain lit on water, and its recipe was closely guarded.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Hutchinson |first1=Sam |title=10 Real-Life Historical Connections In Game Of Thrones That You Never Noticed |url=https://screenrant.com/game-thrones-real-life-connections-links/#roman-empire |work=[[Screen Rant]]}}</ref>
*In Guy Gavriel Kay’s ''Sarantine Mosaic'', a fantasy duology roughly based on the 10th century Byzantine Empire, Sarantine fire (analogous to Greek fire) is deployed through tanks and nozzles to accomplish two assassinations.

==In popular culture==
*Greek fire was used by [[Blackbeard]]'s ship, the ''[[Queen Anne's Revenge]]'', in the 2011 film ''[[Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides]]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.wordplayer.com/archives/PIRATES4.cover.html|title=PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: ON STRANGER TIDES by Ted Elliott & Terry Rossio|website=www.wordplayer.com}}</ref>
*An application of Greek fire is shown in the 2011 [[Ubisoft]] video game ''[[Assassin's Creed Revelations|Assassin's Creed: Revelations]]'' when the main character, [[Ezio Auditore da Firenze|Ezio Auditore]], escapes from the port of [[Istanbul]] using a hand projector located on an [[Ottoman Navy|Ottoman ship]].

==See also==
* [[List of Byzantine inventions]]
* [[List of flamethrowers]]
* [[List of lost inventions]]
* [[Molotov cocktail]]
* [[Archimedes' heat ray]]

== Notes ==
{{Notefoot}}

== References ==
=== Citations ===
{{Reflist|25em}}

=== Sources ===
{{refbegin}}
* {{citation
 |last = al-Hassan
 |first = A. Y.
 |chapter = Alchemy, chemistry and chemical technology
 |pages = 41–83
 |editor-last = al-Hassan
 |editor-first = A. Y.
 |title = Science and Technology in Islam: Technology and applied sciences
 |publisher = UNESCO
 |year = 2001
 |isbn = 9231038311
 |chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=h2g1qte4iegC&pg=PA41
}}
* {{citation
 |last = Cheronis
 |first = Nicholas D.
 |title = Chemical Warfare in the Middle Ages: Kallinikos' 'Prepared Fire'
 |location = Chicago
 |journal = [[Journal of Chemical Education]]
 |year = 1937
 |volume = 14
 |issue = 8
 |pages = 360–365
 |doi = 10.1021/ed014p360
|bibcode = 1937JChEd..14..360C
 }}
* {{citation
 |last = Christides
 |first = Vassilios
 |contribution = Fireproofing of War Machines, Ships and Garments
 |title = Proc. Tropis VI: 6th International Symposium on Ship Construction in Antiquity, Lamia 1996
 |location = Athens
 |year = 1991
 |pages = 135–141
 |issn = 1105-7947
}}
* {{Citation
 |chapter = Nafṭ
 |first = Vassilios
 |last = Christides
 |title = The Encyclopedia of Islam, New Edition, Volume VII: Mif–Naz
 |publisher = Brill
 |location = Leiden and New York
 |year = 1993
 |isbn = 9004094199
 |pages = 884–886
 |postscript = .
}}
* {{citation
 |title = The Alexiad
 |editor-last = Dawes
 |editor-first = Elizabeth A.
 |publisher = Routledge & Kegan Paul
 |location = London
 |year = 1928
 |url = http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/AnnaComnena-Alexiad.html
}}
* {{citation
 |last = Crosby
 |first = Alfred W.
 |title = Throwing Fire: Projectile Technology Through History
 |publisher = Cambridge University Press
 |year = 2002
 |isbn = 978-0521791588
}}
* {{Skeptoid | id=4832 | number=832| date=17 May 2022 | title=What Greek Fire Really Was | access-date=20 May 2022}}
* {{citation
 | last = Ellis Davidson
 | first = Hilda R.
 | author-link = Hilda Ellis Davidson
 | title = The Secret Weapon of Byzantium
 | journal=[[Byzantinische Zeitschrift]]
 | volume=66
 | year=1973
 | pages=61–74
}}
* {{citation
 | last=Forbes
 | first=R. J.
 | title = More Studies in Early Petroleum History 1860–1880
 | chapter=Naphtha Goes To War
 | location=Leiden
 | publisher=E.J. Brill
 | year=1959
 | pages=70–90
}}
* {{citation
 | last1=Haldon
 | first1=John
 | last2=Byrne
 | first2=Maurice
 | title = A Possible Solution to the Problem of Greek Fire
 | journal = [[Byzantinische Zeitschrift]]
 | volume=70
 | year=1977
 | pages=91–99
 | doi = 10.1515/byzs.1977.70.1.91
| s2cid=191489863
 }}
* {{citation
 | last=Haldon
 | first=John
 | editor-last=Jeffreys
 | editor-first=Elizabeth
 | editor-link=Elizabeth Jeffreys
 | title = Byzantine Style, Religion and Civilization: In Honour of Sir Steven Runciman
 | chapter = 'Greek fire' revisited: recent and current research
 | pages = 290–325
 | publisher = Cambridge University Press
 | year = 2006
 |isbn = 978-0521834452
}}
* Karatolios K., ''Greek Fire and its contribution to Byzantine might'', translated by Leonard G. Meachim (Mytilene 2013) {{ISBN?}}
* {{citation
 |last = Leicester
 |first = Henry Marshall
 |title = The historical background of chemistry
 |publisher=Courier Dover Publications
 |year=1971
 |isbn = 978-0486610535
}}
* {{citation
 | editor1-first = Gyula
 | editor1-last = Moravcsik
 | editor2-first = R.J.H.
 | editor2-last = Jenkins
 | year = 1967
 | title = Constantine Porphyrogenitus: De Administrando Imperio
 | publisher = Dumbarton Oaks
}}
* {{citation
 | first = David
 | last = Nicolle
 | title = Medieval Warfare Source Book: Christian Europe and its Neighbours
 | publisher = [[Brockhampton Press]]
 |year = 1996
 |isbn = 1860198619
}}
* {{citation
 | first= James Riddick
 | last= Partington
 | author-link = J. R. Partington
 | title = A History of Greek Fire and Gunpowder
 | publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press
 | year = 1999
 |isbn = 0801859549
 |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=30IJLnwpc8EC
}}
* {{citation
 | last = Pászthory
 | first = Emmerich
 | title = Über das 'Griechische Feuer'. Die Analyse eines spätantiken Waffensystems
 | journal = Antike Welt
 | volume = 17
 | issue = 2
 | year = 1986
 | pages = 27–38
}}
* {{citation
 | first = John H.
 | last = Pryor
 | chapter = Byzantium and the Sea: Byzantine Fleets and the History of the Empire in the Age of the Macedonian Emperors, c. 900–1025 CE
 | title = War at Sea in the Middle Ages and the Renaissance
 | editor1-last = Hattendorf
 | editor1-first = John B.
 | editor1-link = John Hattendorf
 | editor2-last = Unger
 | editor2-first = Richard W.
 | pages = 83–104
 | publisher = Boydell Press
 | year = 2003
 |isbn = 0851159036
}}
* {{citation
 | first1 = John H.
 | last1 = Pryor
 | last2= Jeffreys
 | first2 = Elizabeth M.
 | title = The Age of the ΔΡΟΜΩΝ: The Byzantine Navy ca. 500–1204
 | publisher = Brill Academic Publishers
 | year = 2006
 |isbn = 978-9004151970
}}
* {{citation
 | last=Roland
 | first=Alex
 | title = Secrecy, Technology, and War: Greek Fire and the Defense of Byzantium
 | jstor=3106585
 | journal = Technology and Culture
 | volume=33
 | issue=4
 | year=1992
 | pages = 655–679
 | doi = 10.2307/3106585
| s2cid=113017993
 }}
* Spears, W.H. Jr. (1969). ''Greek Fire: The Fabulous Secret Weapon That Saved Europe''. {{ISBN|0960010637}}
* {{citation
 | last1 = Theophanes
 | author1-link = Theophanes the Confessor
 | last2= Turtledove
 | first2 = Harry (Transl.)
 | author2-link = Harry Turtledove
 | title = The chronicle of Theophanes: an English translation of ''anni mundi'' 6095–6305 (A.D. 602–813)
 | publisher = University of Pennsylvania Press
 | year = 1982
 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=lK5wIPb4Vi4C
 |isbn = 978-0812211283
}}
* Thucydides, ''History of the Peloponnesian War'', translated by Rex Warner; with an introduction and notes by M.I. Finley (London 1972)
* {{citation
 | last=Toutain
 | first=J.
 | title=Le feu grégeois
 | journal=Journal des Savants
 | location=Paris
 | year=1953
 | pages=77–80
 | language = fr
}}
* "The Rise of Gawain, Nephew of Arthur (De ortu Waluuanii)," ed. Mildred Leake Day, in Wilhelm, James J. (1994). ''The Romance of Arthur''. New York: Garland. pp.&nbsp;369–397. {{ISBN|0815315112}}
* {{citation
 | last=Zenghelis
 | first=C.
 | title = Le feu grégeois et les armes à feu des Byzantins
 | journal=Byzantion
 | volume=VI
 | location = Brussels
 | year=1932
 | pages=265–286
}}
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* [https://www.worldhistory.org/Greek_Fire/ Greek Fire – World History Encyclopedia]

{{Byzantine Empire topics|state=collapsed}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Greek Fire}}
[[Category:Flamethrowers]]
[[Category:Byzantine military equipment]]
[[Category:Greek inventions]]
[[Category:Incendiary weapons]]
[[Category:Medieval artillery]]
[[Category:Byzantine science]]
[[Category:Byzantine navy]]
[[Category:Technology in the Middle Ages]]
[[Category:Naval weapons]]
[[Category:Lost inventions]]